A Morgan Thanksgiving
by SillyOldThing
Summary: Morgan takes a recovering Reid back to Chicago for Thanksgiving. Part 6 Up!
1. Part One

**A Morgan Thanksgiving **

Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds.

_'The still small voice,' _William Cowper_._

Spencer Reid wondered if he had made a mistake, his stomach was tied up in a million knots. He didn't have to do this; he could have been home in his nice cosy apartment watching a DVD or reading some new scientific journal. Instead he was sitting in a drive way in a rental car filled with terror

"Well pretty boy, I know it was a long drive from the airport, but I can't believe your ass has taken root to the carseat."

"What, what?" Reid looked up at his friend Derek Morgan, who was getting out of the car.

"We're here," Morgan said.

Reid looked up at the Morgan family home. He saw Derek's mother looking out the window and smiling. He couldn't believe he had actually accepted Morgan's invitation to spend thanksgiving with him and his family in Chigago.

&&&&&&&&&&&

Two days earlier he had inadvertantly mentioned in front of the whole team that he was alone at Thanksgiving. Everyone else had plans with friends or family. Garcia was going to spend the holiday with Kevin's family. Hotch and Rossi decided to get together and eat out. JJ was with Will and Prentiss was going to her parents. He inwardly groaned at the looks of pity that passed among the group. He wanted to tell them he had been having Thanksgiving alone for many years. His mother was no fan of the holiday and he always flew to Vegas to spend Christmas with her instead. There was an instant tidal wave of invitations from everyone. He hastened to decline them all, assuring them he was perfectly fine alone for a few days. Morgan however refused to let the matter drop. He was like a man on a mission. He practically insisted Spencer fly to Chigago with him. He told him his mother would be more than happy to have him and that with his mom and two sisters there, he felt the need for a little more testosterone at the table. Before Reid even realized what he was doing, he accepted.

Morgan's face had broke into a wide grin. "Great! I'll get you a flight. It'll be a good time, wait til you try my mom's pumpkin pie."

Reid forced a weak smile on his face. "I can hardly wait," he said.

Now here he was.

&&&&&&&&&&

Morgan grabbed both their bags out of the trunk and waited patiently for Reid to catch up to him. He hobbled rather slowly on his new cane; he had just stopped using his crutches and the cold Chigago wind was so strong it threatened to knock him off his feet. He made his way into the foyer of the Morgan home. It was wonderfully warm and was filled with delicious cooking smells, something he never experienced when he was growing up.

Morgan's mother Fran greeted her son first with a big hug and a kiss on the cheek. Morgan's two sisters stood off to the side and smiled at the pair of them. She turned her attention to Spencer, she went to him and gave him a light gentle hug as if she was afraid he might break.

"So happy you could join us Dr. Reid," She said with a warm smile.

"Please, call me Spencer, and thank you for having me Mrs. Morgan. I hope it's not too much trouble."

She waved him off, "Please, what's one more and you must call me Fran. Desiree, Sarah, show some manners and say hello to our guest."

The two young women said hello, Spencer offered them a shy wave. He couldn't help remembering meeting Morgan's family under less happy circumstances a few years back. Everybody was quite friendly now, still he wondered if coming back home was difficult for Morgan.

"Mama, are you going to tell me where to put the bags or just let me stand here all day?" griped Morgan.

His mother ignored him. She was studying Spencer. Derek had told her about Reid's leg injury. She had expected the cane and the physical limitations, what she didn't expect to see was the pain and weariness in his eyes. This wasn't the same young man who had stood in her livingroom eating birthday cake, spouting inane statistics over two years ago. This was a changed soul. _'Someone's gotta put a smile on this boy's face and at least_ _twenty pounds'. _She eyed his thin frame. _'Time to start feeding this one,'_ she thought.

"Mama? Earth to Mama."

"Oh Derek, just put the bags down, Dr. Reid... I mean Spencer, you look exhausted; why don't you go lie down for awhile and I'll fix you both up with a snack a bit later."

Reid had to admit that sounded pretty good. He was more tired than usual; he put it down having to haul himself around on crutches all these months and pretending to the team that he wasn't in any pain. Fran Morgan gently took his arm and led him down the hall.

"You'll be sleeping in Sarah's old room. She lives just a few miles from here now, Desiree still lives with me when she's not at school. Derek honey, you know where your old room is "

Morgan shook his head smiling. It seemed like his mother had already taken Reid under her wing; he was about to say so when he saw the funny smirks on the faces of his sisters. Sarah gave Desiree a little jab with her elbow which made her giggle. Derek frowned at the two of them.

"What's up with you two?" He asked.

Sarah grinned at her brother, "Oh nothing, it's just that I caught Desiree enjoying the view."

"Sarah!" exclaimed her sister.

"It's true," Sarah replied.

"What in hell's name are you two talking about?"

"It's just that I don't remember Dr. Reid being so cute." Desiree informed her brother

"Excuse me?" said Derek.

"Well, the last time we saw him he was like this skinny nerd guy with horrible glasses, well, now he's kinda hot."

Derek stared at his sisters dumbstruck. "Reid. Hot. Are you ok?"

"Oh c'mon Derek, it's true, why he's even got a bit of a booty now," Sarah told him.

"Just a little bit, a tiny one," Desiree amended.

"Well you know more than a handful is wasted,'' giggled Sarah.

Morgan couldn't believe he was standing in his mother's living room listening to his sisters talk about Reid's ass.

"I can't believe you two."

"Believe what?" said Fran as she entered the room.

"Nothing Mama. Anyone for coffee?" asked Sarah.

"Sure, I'll help you," said her sister, wanting to be away from her mother's radar.

Fran Morgan took her son's hand and led him to the sofa. "Let's talk Mr. FBI."

Morgan rolled his eyes, "Please, I hope this isn't one of those _'where are my grandbabies' _is it?"

"No, I'm leaving that for when your Aunt Lettie and Uncle Owen are here, I might need backup."

Morgan groaned, "Oh no, tell me you're kidding, You invited them for Thanksgiving, they're crazy!"

"They're family Derek, they have no place else to go."

"I better warn Reid"

His mother's eyes clouded over. "Oh that boy, how he's changed."

Morgan had a horrible fleeting thought his mother was about to start talking about Reid's ass. "Really, I don't see any change in him except maybe he has four times as much hair."

"I don't mean on the outside Derek, on the inside. I can see it in his eyes."

Derek frowned, he wondered what change his family saw that he didn't. The kid still looked the same to him. His eyes strayed over to the kitchen. He saw Desiree peering down the hall towards Reid's room. He gave a big sigh.

_'This is going to be an interesting Thanksgiving this year_,' he thought.

&&&&&&&&&&&

Fin.

End of part 1

Shall I continue? Please read and review.


	2. Part Two

**A Morgan Thanksgiving: Part two.**

Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds. Wah!

'You grow up the day you have the first real laugh, at yourself,' Ethel Barrymore.

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Morgan woke up, he stretched and yawned and found himself in the comfort of his old bed in his old room. There was a strange kind of contentment in it. His senses were greeted by the aroma of freshly brewed coffee and sweet rolls. His stomach gave a loud rumble as if it were urging him to get out of bed and get into that kitchen quick. He sat up and looked around. He saw that his mother had made half of his old room into a place to do her scrapbooking. He saw a pile of old family photos on her work table. He reminded himself to take a look at them later.

He felt better this morning. He must have been tired last night; he had to admit he had been slightly freaked out by his sisters' oogling of Reid. Now he laughed. He knew there was nothing more his sisters loved to do than get under his skin, especially Sarah. He threw on a pair of sweats and headed to the kitchen. He hoped Reid had left him some coffee.

His mother and Sarah were already at the table finishing their breakfast. He saw no sign of Reid. He glanced at the clock, it was nearly eleven.

'_Pretty boy must have been really tired last night to sleep this late'. _He thought.

"Good morning sleepy head, there are sweetrolls in the oven, help yourself," said his mother.

Morgan leaned over and kissed his mom on the cheek and proceeded to pour himself a coffee. He noticed the pot was full.

"Wow, I'm lucky, if Reid were awake this pot would be empty," he said as he sat down at the table.

Sarah grinned at him, "Actually, Spencer made that pot. He was up early and he and Desiree drank the first one."

"They did?"

"Yup, Desiree made the sweetrolls too. I think she saw Spencer plowing through those cookies last night and decided that the way to his heart was through his flat little belly." Sarah grinned at her brother over her coffee cup.

Derek knew what she was doing and refused to take the bait. "That's nice," he said calmly.

Fran looked at her two grown children and smiled. This banter between them had been going for as long as she could remember; she never took it too seriously.

"Sarah is just teasing you, though Spencer's a lovely boy. You know that since Des got her Bachelor of Science, she's been studying kinesiology, she's thinking about becoming a physiotherapist. Well Spencer told her all about his leg injury and she got her notes out and asked him if he'd mind reading them. Oh they looked so cute sitting there in their pyjamas reading her work," his mother enthused.

"I didn't know she was doing that," said Morgan. "and Reid never talks to me about his leg."

"Do you ever ask about it?" said Sarah.

Morgan ignored her, "So where are they now, off doing brain surgery somewhere?"

His mother got up from the table. "Don't be silly, Desiree offered to show him the sights in Chicago. They left about 20 minutes ago."

"Sight seeing, on his bad leg?" Suddenly Morgan felt a little anxious.

"No, I let them take my car. That young man needs to have a little fun," his mother stated.

Sarah leaned forward, "You didn't expect him to sit and watch you watch football all day did you?"

"No, but doesn't Des have a boyfriend, a Rashid something or other?"

Both his mother and sister burst out laughing. "Oh Derek honey, that was in high school." His mother gave him a little pat on the back.

Sarah sighed and shook her head. "Really, you should try to stay in the loop a bit Derek."

Fran Morgan motioned to her daughter. "Let's get going Sarah, there are still a few last minute things I need to pick up for tomorrow, you said you would help,"

"Coming Mama," Sarah gave Derek a sly wink. "Say hi to the love birds... if they come back that is," she whispered.

Morgan watched his mother and sister leave the house. He had a strange gnawing feeling in the pit of his stomach and it wasn't from the sweetrolls. Why did it bother him that Reid and Desiree went on a little sightseeing trip? He liked Reid and trusted him. Nothing was going on between him and his baby sister. So why did he have an urge to jump in his rental car and do surveilance. He put down the half eaten sweetroll. Just once he'd like to come home without some kind of drama.

&&&&&&&&&&&

Derek sat back in the easy chair and sipped on his beer. He had been trying to watch football, but he finally gave up. All he could concentrate on was looking at the clock every two minutes. It was going on 5 o'clock and Reid and his sister had yet to return. His mother and Sarah had returned from the market and spent the afternoon baking pies for tomorrows dinner, the sweet aroma of cooked apples and spicy pumpkin filled the entire house. Sarah came in from the kitchen and flopped down on the sofa opposite her brother. She and his mother seemed totally unconcerned with the whereabouts of the two younger people. Derek wanted to say something, but he wouldn't give Sarah the satisfaction of knowing he was worried. She spoke instead.

"So, do you think they're doing it?" she said as she casually flipped through a magazine.

Derek nearly spit out his beer. "How can you say something like that about your own little sister?"

She shrugged. "I know they're two consenting adults and Desiree has a key to my apartment."

Morgan looked his sister straight in the eye. "And I know Reid and he doesn't do things like that, trust me," he gave Sarah a smug smile.

Sarah looked up and narrowed her eyes. "Big brother, are you trying to tell me Dr Reid plays for the other team?"

"Noo, I'm saying he's different, he just wouldn't do something like that."

Sarah put down her magazine, "Ok, so Spencer's a young hetersexual guy?"

"Yes."

"And you would agree our sister is smart and attractive."

"I guess so," agreed Derek .

"And as far as you know he has a fully functioning di..."

"Whoa whoa whoa! Watch the potty mouth young lady." Derek sat up in his chair, he wanted to end this conversation. "Mama, what happened to the sweet innocent little sister I used to have?"

His mother walked in from the kitchen wiping her hands on a dish towel. "I think she existed in your head, you always had a way of looking at the people you love with rose coloured glasses. You get so disappointed when they do something human." She bent down and gave him a kiss on the forehead. "That's what makes you, you, honey."

"You're probably looking at Spencer with those same glasses," Sarah said.

Derek felt attacked on both sides. He was about to defend himself when they all heard the front door open and the voices of Reid and Desiree.

Reid came hobbling in, Desiree had one hand around his waist and a bouquet of flowers in the other. They were chatting quite amiably until they noticed three pairs of eyes focused on them. Desiree released her grip on Reid's waist. Reid recognized the look in Derek's eyes, it was a look he usually reserved for doors and walls he was about to punch.

"Everything ok?" asked Desiree

"Sure sweetie, have a nice time?" Said her mother.

"Yeah we had a great time..."

Morgan didn't let her finish. "Reid needed help walking?" He looked pointedly at Desiree's arm.

"Actually, yeah, it rained a bit and it made a thin sheen of ice on the walk, I guess I forgot to let go," She giggled.

"Long tour you went on." Morgan said, his voice flat.

"Desiree took me to her favorite pizza place for lunch," Reid supplied.

"Oh Spencer, you paid, it was more like you took me for lunch."

"It was the least I could do," he said modestly.

" Yeah and then we..." They both started to laugh a little.

"Then you what?" said Morgan glancing between the two of them trying to read their expressions.

"We saw a zombie movie," Desiree told him.

Derek furrowed his brow at the two of them. "Zombies?"

Desiree's eyes sparkled. "Can you believe it, we both love Zombies."

"Zombie movies," Spencer corrected. He flashed a smile at Desiree.

Morgan noticed it was one of Reid's full megawatt smiles, the one he rarely ever saw that seemed to change his entire face. In fact he hadn't noticed Reid smiling at all anymore. A lot had gone on at the BAU lately. Hotch didn't smile, then again, Hotch never smiled.

"Oh!" Reid said. "I almost forgot, these are for you Mrs Morgan, for letting me come for dinner." He took the bouquet of flowers from Desiree and handed them to Morgan's mother.

"Why thank you Spencer, that is so sweet," Fran held the fragrant cluster up to her nose and inhaled. "These are lovely"

Reid felt fatigue coming on him again. It was a bigger day than he was used to. He needed to rest his leg. He noticed Morgan looking at him rather strangely. He wanted Morgan to relax and enjoy his family and not worry about entertaining him. He winced as he felt the familiar throb in his patella, he needed to lie down.

"I think I might grab a short nap, if no one minds," Spencer said.

"No not at all," said Fran.

Reid turned and slowly made his way down the hall. Morgan's mother remarked how nice it was to see him smile and went to find a vase for the flowers. Morgan turned around to say something to Desiree but her attention was drawn elsewhere. She stood, arms crossed over her chest, her eyes fixed on the lower half of Reid's retreating figure and a small smile on her face.

Derek flopped back into his easy chair and wondered why this Thanksgiving was starting to feel more stressful than his first day as Unit Chief.

&&&&&&&&&&&

Fin

End of part 2.

AN : Please read and reveiw. Thanks to all who reveiwed Part 1. It was much appreciated. Part 3 coming soon.


	3. Part Three

**A Morgan Thanksgiving Part three**

Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds.

_'You can kid the world, but not your sister,' _ Charlotte Gray.

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Reid hobbled into the livingroom as quietly as he could. It was 2 am. The house was silent except for the ticking of an antique clock on the china cabinet. He gingerly lowered himself into the easychair, while wishing the damn thing didn't squeak so much.

His knee was really bothering him tonight, which made it near impossible to get to sleep. At this moment he missed his journals and his books. He knew that if he kept his mind busy enough he could distract himself as he had many other nights. Here in the Morgan livingroom it was far too quiet with only his pain for company.

He leaned back in the chair and closed his eyes. He tried to utilize some of the visualization techniques he had learned in therapy. He forced his body to relax and took some deep breaths; he tried to find something pleasant for his mind to focus on, instead he heard a soft feminine voice speak to him.

"You ok Spencer?"

Reid opened his eyes to see Desiree standing in the doorway. She was wearing flannel sleep pants, an oversized t-shirt and big fluffy slippers. He thought she looked cute.

He gave her a shy smile. "I couldn't sleep, did I wake you?"

She shook her head. "No, I'm just an night owl." She came in the room and pushed an overstuffed ottoman next to Reid's easy chair.

"I can't sleep in strange beds either." she told him.

"Oh I'm used to being in lots of strange beds," he saw her raise her eyebrows. "I mean we stay in hotels a lot in our job." he hastened to add. He

felt the colour rising in his face.

He rubbed his knee. "My knee's a little achy tonight," he explained.

Desiree looked at him and his knee. "Oh, anything I can do?"

&&&&&&&&&&&

Morgan awoke with a start. He sat up and turned on the light. The clock said it was just past 2:30 in the morning. He was awakened by a nightmare, he groaned as he recalled the details. He dreamt Reid and Desiree had gotten married and had triplets. The triplets all looked like miniature Reids. For some reason Garcia was in the dream as well and the two of them were chasing the tiny Reids around the BAU and Garcia kept shouting she wanted to keep one.

Derek wanted to go back to sleep but something else was bothering him, his conscience. He realized he had been pretty cold to Reid ever since he and Des came back from their little sightseeing trip. He felt ashamed of himself. Reid had done nothing wrong. All he had done was accept the hospitality of his family. He didn't deserve Morgan's cold shoulder, he needed to make it right. He decided he would go and speak to Reid right away and maybe he could blame his behavior on his recent unwanted promotion and the stress of being back home. Derek got up and quietly made his way to Reid's room. The door to his bedroom was slightly ajar.

"Reid," he whispered.

There was no answer, he peeked his head in the door and looked over at the bed, it was empty. That sick gnawing feeling was returning to his stomach.

_'Ok,'_ he thought _ 'where do I check next?_.'

The answer was obvious. He was staring at Desi's room directly across the hall. He went over and put his ear to the door; no sound. He knew he should knock but he reasoned they were lucky he didn't just kick the door in. He grabbed the door handle and flung it open, he peered into the darkness. Her room was empty as well. Just then he heard the soft murmur of voices coming from the livingroom. It was them. He moved closer so he could hear. Part of him wanted to go back to his room like any normal person but another part forced him to stand silently in the hall and not move. He felt ridiculous but he couldn't seem to help himself. He heard Desiree's soft voice.

"May I see it?"

"I guess so," said Reid.

Morgan heard the soft rustling of clothes.

"Wow, bigger than I thought it would be." Morgan thought she sounded a little awestruck.

"Swelling." Reid explained.

"Do you mind if I touch it?"

"Hmm, are you sure you want too?"

"It's something I'll need to experience sooner or later," she said.

"Well ok then."

"That's really hard."

Morgan had heard enough, he thought his head was going to explode, sightseeing was one thing but playing doctor in his mother's livingroom was just too much. He charged into the room.

"That's enough!" he snarled.

Reid and Desiree looked up from where they were sitting with startled expressions. Reid was sitting in the easy chair with a pyjama leg rolled up over his knee. Desiree sat in their big old ottoman and appeared to be examining the large bullet hole scar .

Reid stared at him, his eyes wide and his mouth gaping open. Desiree was giving her brother a look like he had suddenly grown three extra heads.

"Derek, what's wrong?"

Morgan was at a loss for words. "I umm .. thought I heard strange voices and I think...I think I had a bad dream." They just continued to stare at him.

"So what are you two doing up so late?" He asked them.

"I couldn't sleep and Des made me a cup of hot milk." Reid held up his mug as if offering proof.

Desiree noticed her brother staring at Reid's knee. "I asked Spencer to show me his injury." She traced the scar with her finger "There's a lot a scar tissue here, it's almost like a keloid."

Derek saw Reid's knee for the very first time. It was bruised and swollen and crisscrossed with surgery scars.

"That looks...man, Reid I had no idea it looked so..." Morgan was unable to finish his thought. He felt slightly shocked at the sight.

Reid quickly rolled down his pantleg. He was starting to feel exposed. He grabbed his cane and got out of the chair.

"Think I'll finish this in my room, thanks Desiree. Goodnight Morgan, see you both in the morning."

The two siblings watched him leave the room. Desiree stood and walked over to her brother.

"Derek are you sure you're ok? You've been acting weird all night."

"No, I'm ok. The job's been stressful lately, maybe a little bit followed me home," Derek smiled at her in an attempt to lighten the mood. He also felt guilty.

"Yeah, I bet, your boss was stabbed and Reid was lucky that guy didn't shoot him in the head instead of his knee."

Morgan hadn't thought of that, everybody had been so worried about Hotch. Now he felt even guiltier

"Goodnight Desi," Morgan said wearily.

"Goodnight Derek, try not to worry about work. just enjoy being home with the family," she stood on her tiptoes and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

Morgan turned off the livingroom lights and headed back to his room. He saw the light under the door to Reid's room. He went over and knocked softly.

"Come in Morgan."

Derek frowned, _'How did Reid know it was me?'_

Morgan pushed the door open and entered the room. Reid was sitting up in bed with rather large book in his hand. He had put a pillow under his leg and the room smelled of some kind of liniment. Morgan wondered again how he could have been so oblivious to Reid's pain.

"Hey Reid, you ok man?"

"Yeah, sorry about the smell, I usuallly only rub this stuff on my leg when it's really achy." He held up the book. "Look what I found."

Derek leaned closer "Ah, one of Sarah's old books. _'War and Peace.' _I would have thought you'd have read that."

Reid smiled. "Not in english."

Derek shuffled his feet nervously. He wanted to apologize, but wasn't sure how. "Look Reid, the reason I came in he..."

"I'm looking forward to tomorrow, meeting more of your family, I was really nervous when I first got here but everybody has been great," Reid interupted.

Derek almost laughed, "That might change when you meet my aunt and uncle. I have to warn you they're crazy, even their dog is crazy."

Spencer looked at Morgan as if he were slow witted. "Morgan, you do realize I have spent the last ten years having christmas dinner in the dining room of a mental institution with my mother?"

Morgan grimaced, "Oh shit!"

This time Reid laughed. "It's ok, let's just get some sleep,"

Morgan nodded. He headed back to his own room. Tomorrow was going to be a great day. He would be the perfect brother, friend and son. All he had to do was adjust his attitude and even if Reid and Desiree started making out over the turkey, he would just smile and say pass the gravy. He was determined this was going to a good thanksgiving, even if it killed him, which he felt certain it might.

Fin:End of Part three.

AN :Please read and review. I promise in Part 4 it will finally be Thanksgiving day.


	4. Part Four

**A Morgan Thanksgiving Part 4**

Disclaimer: Do not own Criminal Minds.

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_'Least said, soonest mended.'_ ~ Charles Dickens

It was the sunlight that awakened Reid. He blinked several times to get the sleep out of his eyes. The sun was shining through the blinds and he could tell it was going to be one of those cool crisp autumn days that he loved. The burning pain in his knee from last night had cooled and he found he could almost ignore it.

Spencer could smell onions and peppers frying in the kitchen; when he closed his eyes they almost made the same sound as falling rain. He snuggled deeper under the comforter. He felt warm and cosy in this comfortle little bed. Reid just wanted to lie there and absorb all the sights, smells and sensations of this fine fall morning. His brain carefully etched each feeling into his memory. He needed happy things to remember, but it was the tantalizing aroma of freshly brewed coffee that had him out of bed, dressed and headed for the kitchen.

&&&&&&

Fran Morgan had gotten up early. She'd been making the stuffing for her turkey; all she had left to do with it now was stuff it and pop it in the oven. She'd made sure to purchase a large bird; her family was a big lover of leftovers and turkey sandwiches.

She was surprised to hear the cheery voice of her son wishing her a good morning. Derek was a notorious nightowl and she wondered what had got him up so early.

"Good morning mama," he said.

"Well good morning to you, you're an early bird today."

He gave her a wicked grin, "That's because today I want to take care of you for a change."

"Oh?"

"Yes, now sit down and enjoy your coffee," he said as he led his mother to the kitchen table.

Morgan's sisters groggilly entered the room.

"What's going on?" yawned Sarah.

"Sit down," ordered Derek. "I'm making my family a beautiful breakfast and then you and I and Des are going to peel potatoes, and squash and whatever else needs to be done."

Sarah and Desiree exchanged looks and shrugged.

Fran started to stand up, "Oh Derek honey, you don't have to..." Fran was silenced by her two daughters.

"Let him mama, it's not a bad idea, especially the making breakfast part," Desiree whispered.

Fran sighed; she knew it was useless to fight all of them and it was so rare when all three were in agreement about something.

Reid walked into the room and saw Derek gathering ingredients from the cupboards and fridge at a manic pace.

"Pretty boy! You're up. How many waffles do you want?"

Fran patted the seat beside her. Desiree silently cursed herself for not putting her makeup on or at least fixing her hair.

Reid frowned at his friend. "Umm, I can make myself some toast."

Morgan handed him a coffee, "No, today you're having Derek Morgan's perfect waffles, no arguments." Reid looked at the other Morgans in confusion.

Desiree patted his hand. "Just do what he says, I think Derek must have been visited by the ghost of thanksgiving past last night." She giggled.

"Ok then." Reid wasn't about to argue, he just wondered why Morgan had suddenly turned into Martha Stewart. He tried to stifle a yawn. Desiree looked at him sympatheticly.

"Reid wasn't feeling too good last night," She told her mother.

Fran's brow creased in concern. She reached over and felt Reid's forehead. "Oh dear, I hope you're not sick, do you want to go back to bed? I could bring your breakfast there."

"Mama, his leg was bothering him," Des explained.

Sarah grinned at Reid. "Mama has no one left to baby," she told him.

"Well maybe if some of these adult children of mine would give me some grandbabies, I would leave them alone," Fran replied haughtily.

"Mama please!" Sarah groaned.

Morgan waved a finger at his sister, "Hey you started it missy."

Sarah was about to toss a barb his way until she saw that the first batch of waffles was nearly finished and there was no point in antagonizing the cook.

&&&&&&&&&&&&

Breakfast went better than Fran and her daughters expected. The waffles were delicious. Morgan ordered his sisters to help prepare the dinner, and his mother had to take her coffee and relax in the living room. Reid stood up and asked what he could do to help.

Fran took his arm, "You are our guest and we don't make guests work. Come with me. I want to show you the scrapbooks I made of my children's baby pictures. Reid heard the simultanious groans of the three people in the kitchen. He found himself being led away towards the couch.

"Are you going to let her do that to him?" whispered Sarah to her brother.

"Hey, when it comes to Mama's scrapbooks, it's every man for himself."

Fran led him to the couch and proceeded to fuss over him, putting a blanket over his legs and getting him another coffee. It made Reid feel self-conscious, yet at the same time he kind of liked it.

"Now," she said as she laid the album in his lap. "This album is Derek's. See, he's having his first bath, isn't he adorable?" Reid threw an evil smirk Derek's way.

"We have a friend --Garcia-- who 'd love to see these."

Derek looked up from the potatoes he was peeling, "Don't forget, I'm still your boss," he called to Reid in a singsong voice.

"Oh Derek, you were just a baby, you loved to be naked," his mother scolded.

Desiree moved from the kitchen and planted herself beside Reid on the couch. Derek looked over and saw that Des was uncomfortably close to his friend. Reid was his usual oblivious self. Morgan closed his eyes and reminded himself to stay cool. Reid on the over hand was not as oblivious as everyone thought. He was fully aware of Desiree sitting snugly beside him; he could smell her peach scented hair when she leaned over to look at the photos. It was also hard to ignore the fact that her right breast was pressed up againt his arm. These stirrings he was feeling seemed inappropriate. He tried to concentrate on the photo albums.

"What's Derek doing there?" Reid asked, he pointed to a picture of a baby Derek, who wore a furious scowl on his face and had two tiny hands balled up into fists.

Morgan's mother laughed, "Oh he was angry there; when he was a toddler, he didn't like going down for a nap. He would get so mad he'd kick at the doors and punch the floors. His father and I had a hard time not laughing when he did it. Have you ever seen anything so silly?"

Reid smiled, "Maybe a couple of times."

&&&&&&&&&&&&

Sarah tapped her brother on the shoulder, "Excuse me Derek, I need a break."

Derek folded up a tea-towel, "Why? We're almost done?"

"We'll I'm taking one anyway, I'm tired. You and I have done all the work. Des has been AWOL."

"She's keeping Reid entertained.''

"Is that what you call it? I thought she was pretending to be a human blanket. If anyone needs me I'll be in the bath," Sarah marched out of the kitchen.

Fran Morgan had just finished showing the last scrapbook. She gathered them up in her arms, "I'll just put these away." She said

Desiree waited until her mother was out of earshot.

"Spencer, you are really patient, most people would have gnawed off their own arm off by now." said Desiree. She moved back a bit, though she did like touching him. She could feel the sinewy muscle through his shirt and it was rather nice.

"Actually, I enjoy photo albums," he said sincerely

Desiree leaned over and whispered in Reid's ear. "How about we escape anyway. Would you care to take a walk with me?" Des knew she was outrageously flirting, but she found his sweetness irresistable and a bit of a turn on.

Derek stood watching the pair on the couch since his mother left the room. He saw Desiree whisper to Reid and then watched as Reid's face began to flush. Desiree stood and held out her hands to Spencer, he took them and awkwardly got off the couch, still holding onto one of her hands the two slowly made their way to the front door. Derek felt like they acted as if he didn't exist. Where in the hell did they think they were going anyway?

"Ahem, ah where are you guys going?" He tried to sound light and unconcerned.

"Just for a walk," Des answered as she helped Reid get his coat on.

Morgan was about to say something else when the front door burst open, Reid and Desiree stumbled back a bit. There, larger than life and twice as loud stood the Morgan's Aunt Lettie. She dropped her small white dog to the floor. Her crinkly dark eyes quickly took in the sight of Des and Spencer.

"Owen, Owen, come here quick, our Desiree's finally got herself a man!" she screeched out into the street.

The small white dog immediatly made a beeline to Morgan and proceeded to hump his foot.

"Oh mama, Aunt lettie and Uncle Owen are here," Morgan called.

The peace and quiet part of the day was now officially over.

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FIN

AN: Please read and review. Sorry for such a long wait for this chapter, was just busy busy busy.

Part 5 Thankgiving dinner.


	5. Part Five

**A Morgan Thanksgiving Part 5**

Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds, not even a little bit.

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'The thing about family disasters is, you never have to wait long before

the next one puts the previous one into perspective.' ~Robert Brault

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Fran came rushing to the front door and greeted Aunt Lettie with a big hug. Lettie's husband Owen came in the house carrying a large cassarole dish in one hand and a big bottle of wine in the other. He huffed and puffed with the effort of walking from the car. He was a large man in his late sixties and seemed to be no stranger to a good meal. He looked around the room at the Morgan family 'til he finally laid eyes on Spencer. He looked him up and down as if Reid were on display at a butcher shop.

"Lettie, is this the one you were screaming about?" He asked her. He noticed Reid leaning on his cane.

Fran came over and gave her uncle a hug.

"So glad to see you Uncle Owen. Derek brought his colleague from work for thanksgiving. This is Dr Spencer Reid."

Reid said nothing but raised his hand in his signiture shy wave.

Owen raised his eyesbrows impressed by the title. "A Doctor?" he turned to Desiree. "You are a very lucky young lady to have your big brother bring home a boy for you, even if he is crippled."

Both Desiree and Reid blushed.

"Uncle Owen, Reid isn't here for me, and he hurt this leg in the line of duty," Des said defensively.

She looked to Derek for back up but he seemed to be too involved in getting their dog off his foot. Sarah finally entered the room, realizing she couldn't hide in the bathroom all night. Lettie walked up to both Reid and Des and gathered the two of them in her ample arms and squeezed them tight

"Oh, he's skinny just like you Desi," she grabbed Reid's face in her hand and inspected him closer. "and he's just as pretty. You two will make very pretty babies, don't you think Fran?"

Owen took a good look at Spencer's skinny frame. "There's not much meat on him," he concluded.

Lettie gave Reid another good squeeze. "Ah but I bet what there is, it's choice," she gave Desiree a sly wink.

Reid wondered if they were planning on counting his teeth.

Desiree suddenly wished the floor would open up and swallow her. Her subtle seduction of Spencer that she sort half planned/fantasized about disappeared. He would now think she was just trolling for a boyfriend or husband. Reid stood there looking shell shocked, trapped in an old lady's embrace.

Fran came over to rescue the both of them. "Derek, you haven't said hello yet," she said turning the attention to her son.

Like a great battleship changing course, Lettie set her sights on Derek. He had just managed to rid himself of the dog without kicking it across the room. He braced himself for the attack.

"Sweet boy sweet boy!" she went over and gave him a generous hug. "Why is a handsome boy like you still single huh? People are going to talk."

Uncle Owen gave a snort, "Lettie, he's a single man in his thirties, people are already talking."

Derek not knowing what to say pulled Sarah toward them, "Aunt Lettie, have you seen Sarah yet?"

Sarah glared at her brother.

"Oh Sarah, maybe next year Derek will bring you home a man. You're a nice looking girl, no reason for you to stay an old maid," Lettie said in a

gentle voice.

Uncle Owen was getting impatient. "Can we sit down now? I need a drink."

"Of course Uncle Owen. Derek, take their coats. Now you make yourself comfortable 'til dinner, we'll have a nice visit," said Fran.

Owen handed Fran the cassarole dish and the wine. "Lettie made me this, last year your stuffing and gravy gave me the worst gas," he informed her.

Reid saw the three Morgan siblings wrinkle their nose in disgust.

"He's not kidding, we had to open every window in the house," said Sarah.

"Why did they have to bring the smelly white rat, that dog won't leave me alone," complained Morgan.

"Kids, come on in, Owen is going to make us all a cocktail," called their mother from the living room.

The two girls trudged relunctantly into the living room.

"It better be a strong one," muttered Sarah.

Derek cast a sympathetic eye on his friend. Reid was merely staring in the direction of the living room, lost in thought. The old couple had entered the house like a pair of tazmanian devils from a cartoon.

"Hey man, sorry about the relatives. The edit button in their brain seems to have melted decades ago," Derek said in apology.

Reid looked at Morgan, ''What? Oh don't worry about that; last christmas at dinner some woman tried to butter my chair and another insisted that I was Fidal Castro." Reid smiled and hobbled to the kiving room.

Morgan shook his head. He had forgotten that Reid was used to crazy.

&&&&&&&&&&

Uncle Owen did make everyone a cocktail, a drink he invented himself; it had three types of liquor, two types of juice and a shot of grenadine poured in a tall glass filled with ice. Morgan took one sip and nearly spit it out. It was unbearably sweet. Sarah dumped hers and poured herself a glass of chablis. His mother, never much of a drinker reclaimed her kitchen and set about putting the finishing touches on dinner. Reid and Desiree however, both lovers of all things sweet were two thirds through their drinks and feeling pleasantly buzzed.

Reid knew he probably shouldn't over-indulge in alcohol, yet at the same time there was a slight numbing effect he was enjoying, he reasoned that he was on a holiday, wasn't driving and that he deserved some sort of respite from the pain in his knee. He looked over at Desiree giggling at something her uncle said. She looked so pretty right now. She had changed into a purple dress with a plunging neckline and he found he had a hard time keeping his eyes off her small but shapely figure. He had to pull off his cardigan as he felt the room was becoming uncomfortably warm.

Sarah came in the room and announced that dinner was ready. Des pulled Reid to his feet and led him to the dining room. She made sure he had a seat beside her.

Fran had set the table with all her best china and linens and crystal; it looked absolutely beautiful. Derek was about to take his place at the head when uncle Owen squeezed past and sat down in Derek's usual spot.

"Ok, where is that bird, we're all starving," boomed his uncle.

Fran mouthed an _'I'm sorry _'at her son as she placed the golden brown turkey in front of Owen.

Derek shrugged and sat down across from Des and Reid. He promised himself he would stay cool and not sweat the small stuff. He gave a resigned sigh as he watched Owen carve the bird. Sarah went around the table and poured everyone a glass of wine. She made sure to give Reid and Des extra, she noted they were already a little buzzed and she wanted to see what would happen if they were given a little extra push.

Food was passed around and there was silence as everyone dug in and enjoyed the feast. Morgan had just taken a mouthful of squash when he felt the dog mount his foot again. He tried to carefully pull his foot away but the fiesty canine hung on. Finally fed up, he gave his foot a good shake, sending the small pooch sailing directly at Reid's legs. Reid was so startled that he banged his bad knee on the underside of the table and gave out a small yelp of pain. Owen and Lettie exchanged knowing smirks.

"Hey there now Desi, you keep your hands above the table and let that young man eat dinner," scolded Lettie.

"Lot's of time for playing hide the canoli after we're gone," said Owen.

Desiree just looked confused. "I didn't do..." she looked to Reid for help. He whispered to her and she started to laugh.

Derek knew Reid probably had just reacted to the dog but now he suddenly noticed all the secret smiles and whispered asides going on across the table; he also saw where Reid's eyes kept drifting every few minutes. He felt his temper rising again. His mother had his Aunt and Uncle engaged in a conversation about their trailer in Florida so she didn't notice when one of Desiree's hands _did_ slip under the table. Morgan pushed his napkin off his lap onto the floor, he bent down and pretended to look for it . He saw Desiree's hand resting lightly on Reid's bad knee. He also saw the little white rat of a dog happily humping his aunt's foot while his uncle kept feeding it bits of turkey. Sarah ducked under the table as well.

"Derek what the hell are you doing under here... ohh!" She saw Desiree's foot now placed snugly between Reid's.

"Look at that," hissed Derek.

Sarah rolled her eyes. "So what? I think it's cute."

"Cute? Did you notice he can't keep his eyes off her chest?" he whispered.

"Well, she couldn't keep her eyes off his ass, so they're even.''

"Derek, Sarah, what are you doing under there?" Asked their mother.

Both of them came back up, "Oh sorry, I dropped my napkin." he muttered. Morgan glared at Reid, which Reid returned with a puzzled lopsided smile.

"Desi, pass me the potatoes, use both hands so you won't drop them." Morgan said a little too sharply.

Des and Reid both looked at Derek in confusion. It seemed to them Derek was having a lot of mood swings these days.

&&&&&&&&&&&

"Dinner as usual was delicious," Owen stated as he patted his stomach in a contented manner. Fran accepted the wealth of compliments on her cooking in her usual humble manner.

"Oh I had a lot of help this year," she said, embarassed by the fuss. "I hope you all saved room for pie and coffee."

Reid's eyes lit up at the mention of caffeine. His thoughts were so wrapped up in cup of coffee that the next question asked of him caught him off guard.

"So Spence, you see my nephew more than me. How's his love life? Anyone special in it?" Asked Aunt Lettie.

"Just this girl Tamara Barnes..."

Reid stopped mid sentence. He had spoken without even thinking. Morgan had told no one about his relationship with Tamara; of course in their office that meant very little. They were a bunch of profilers. The only person who was blissfully ignorant was Garcia and maybe Hotch, who had much bigger things on his mind.

"I mean.. " Reid started to stammer. It was too late, the cat was out of the bag.

Derek closed his eyes. _'Here it comes,'_ he thought.

Lettie gave Owen a punch in the arm. "See, see, I thought there was something going on with him, he's been antsy all night."

Morgan's mother and sisters leaned in closer.

"Derek is it true, are you seeing someone?" asked his mother, hope in her voice.

"Are you in love?" Sarah asked in a teasing tone of voice.

"Show us a picture," demanded Desi.

Derek stood and put his hands up in a defensive manner. "Tamara is just a friend I'm helping out Mama. I think I'll have that pie later, right now I'm gonna load the dishwasher. Reid, we'll talk later."

Fran sighed; she knew it was useless to try to get any more information out of her son right now. Reid felt mortified, though his slip of the tongue seemed to make the rest of the family pretty happy. Desi took his hand and squeezed it, he turned and looked into her soft brown eyes and temporarily forgot about Morgan.

&&&&&&&&&&

Fran and her son sat in the kitchen together sipping coffee and enjoying a slice of pie. The house was quiet now. Owen and Lettie went back to their motel with promises of dropping in tomorrow. Sarah, Desiree and Reid all retired early. Fran enjoyed this time with Derek as she rarely got to see him and he and Reid would be flying back to Virginia tomorrow.

"It's been a great thanksgiving Mama," Derek told his mother.

"Thanks honey, now about this girl, you know you can bring anyone here anytime."

"Mama, I mean it. We're just friends, but if that ever changes, you'll be the first to know."

"Thanks Sweetie. That goes for Spencer too, I think he relaxed this weekend and you know I think Des might have a little crush on him."

"Really," Morgan said. "I hadn't noticed."

Fran stood up and kissed her son on the cheek. "Goodnight, I'll see you in the morning,"

"Mama, just one question, why Owen and Lettie? Every year you invite them. You must know they're crazy."

Fran turned and smiled at her son. "I guess it's their honesty, what you see is what you get. They may not have all the social graces but a long time ago when your father and I got engaged, the two of them were almost as happy about it as we were. Not everybody was. I guess I just love them. People you love can drive you crazy sometimes Derek."

"Good enough mama," Derek said softly.

Morgan gathered up the coffee cups and put them in the sink. He made his way down the hall to his bedroom when he saw Desiree come out of Reid's room.

"What are you doing?" he asked her.

Desiree put her finger to her lips. "Shh, he fell asleep and we were just talking, it keeps his mind off his knee. Did you know he hasn't taken any kind of painkillers for it, not even right after surger? I don't understand why he feels he has to be so tough."

She peered into her brothers face. "What did you think we were doing?"

Morgan kind of shrugged, "Well you two did seem very friendly at dinner."

Desiree shook her head at her brother and laughed. "What, you think I... we'd... right under Mama's roof. Really Derek you can be so mistrusting at times," she said as she went into her own room.

Derek wasn't satisfied; he still wanted to have a word with Reid. He opened the door to Spencer's room and went in. There was a nightlight on. He had forgot about Reid's fear of the dark_ 'what the hell was that about anyway.' _Spencer was lying on his back on the single bed wearing a pair a pyjamas that looked like they should of belonged to somebody's grandpa. He had his leg propped up by pillows. and was sleeping soundly. Suddenly he just looked young and vunerable. Morgan didn't have the heart to wake him. He covered him with a blanket.

"Goodnight pretty boy, happy thanksgiving," Morgan whispered and he left the room.

FIN

AN: I plan on a short epilogue that takes place back in Quantico. I hope you enjoyed this story. I took a bit of license with the sister characters and the aunt and uncle were just made up by me. Please read and review.


	6. A Morgan Thanksgiving epilogue

**A Morgan Thanksgiving : Epilogue**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own criminal minds. Nope.

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_'There's no place like home, there's no place like home' _~ Dorthey Gale from the Wizard of Oz.

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Morgan attempted to get comfortable, he laid his head back against the headrest and closed his eyes. He could hear Spencer beside him taking a book out of his messenger bag; he also heard him take a sharp intake of breath, he looked over at him.

"Are you ok?" He asked.

Reid nodded, but Morgan suspected that these cramped airplane seats weren't doing Reid's knee any favors. He supposed that they were both a bit spoiled by the roominess of the BAU jet; still he was glad to be going home, as much as he loved his family he thought of Quantico as home now even with all it entailed. He glanced again at Spencer; he was quietly reading.

Their goodbyes to Morgan's family had been short and sweet. His mother had tried to make them take some turkey with them until Morgan told her it probably wasn't even allowed or safe for that matter. His family had hugged them both goodbye, of course Desi had hugged Reid a little longer and a little harder and he was pretty sure he saw her slip a piece of paper into his hand.

"I'm on twitter," she told him "or email me, it's all on there," she said pointing to his breast pocket. Reid had smiled and thanked her and promised he would. Morgan wondered when his sister had become such a flirt. He breathed a sigh of relief, the two of them would be hundreds of miles away from one another, they could twitter to their hearts content and he didn't have to worry about anyone being taken advantage of or being hurt. Cyberspace was a wonderful thing, nobody ever got pregnant through cyberspace. Morgan was snapped out of his musings when he heard Reid's voice.

"Morgan?"

"uh yeah."

"I want to thank you."

"For what?"

"For inviting me to share thanksgiving with your family."

Morgan opened his eyes and took a good look at his friend. "No problem kid, glad to have you."

"It was the best thanksgiving I've ever had."

Morgan chuckled, "Don't tell my mom that, it'll go to her head."

Reid continued, Your sister's are pretty nice. Desiree and I spent a lot of time talking, She's a very bright girl. She has a good mind."

Morgan cast a sideways glance at Reid. _'It wasn't her mind I saw you staring at last night_,' he thought.

Reid caught the look Morgan was giving him. "What?" he said.

Morgan shook his head. "Nothing I'm just glad to be going home."

Reid nodded his head in agreement. "Yeah, me too."

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The next morning at the BAU.

Derek thought he had got to work early, that was until he entered the bull pen and saw the lovely ladies of the BAU huddled around Reid's desk. The three women looked up at Morgan with big smiles on their face's.

"Spence told us what a great time he had at your mother's house," JJ said with a grin.

Morgan was puzzled, not at the compliment but by the fact all three women seemed to be staring at something laid out on Reid's desk. He peered closer, it appeared to be a 8x10 photo.

"What's that? another goth photo of Prentiss," he asked.

"No, better than that," said Emily.

Garcia grinned at him. "Reid told me your mother is into scrapbooking so I emailed your sister and asked if she'd mind scannng a picture of you for us to see. I must say, you look absolutely adorable," enthused Garcia.

"Just look at those chubby cheeks," added JJ.

Morgan blanched. "If those are naked pictures, somebody is getting fired."

Prentiss turned the picture around so he could see it. It was a photo of Morgan dressed up in a little jacket and bow tie looking like it was his first day of preschool.

"Oh!," he said relieved.

Garcia's eyes widened "You have naked pictures, are they ...recent.?"

Morgan cleared his throat. "I think there must be some work around here for everyone to do."

Garcia snatched the picture off the desk. "I know I have something to do, "she muttered happily.

Both Prentiss and JJ walked off toward the coffee room together.

Morgan was about to make a comment to Reid when he saw the young profiler looking at his computer screen with a rather goofy smile on his face.

"What are you looking at Reid?" He hoped it wasn't another one of his baby pictures.

"I just got an email from Desiree, she's thinking of taking some classes at Georgetown this winter. She wants to ask you if she can stay with you for a few months and says she'll even take care of your dog when you're away. She's going to call you tonight; apparently your mother thinks it's a great idea. She wants Des to be near family. Pretty amazing huh?" Reid said in a enthusiastic rush.

Morgan sank down into the nearest chair. He felt that knot in his stomach again. Suddenly the nightmare about the tiny Reids came rushing back but this time they all lived in his house, and Reid and Des had turned into uncle Owen and aunt Lettie.

"What's wrong with Morgan?" asked Prentiss, who had had just returned to her desk. "He almost looks like he's about to cry."

Reid got up from his desk, "He just got some good news, he and his family are amazingly close."

"C'mon, JJ wants us in the briefing room, we'll hear about your good news later," said Prentiss.

"Coming," Derek wondered if it was too late to run away from home. He felt the strong hand of Rossi clap him on the back. Rossi had overheard everything.

"Don't worry Morgan, I've had relatives move in with me, probably contributed to one of my divorces... but hey, that's another story. I get the impression Reid kinda likes this little sister of yours. Having dates over will be strange of course.."

Morgan stopped listening. He just realized no matter where he was, he was surrounded by family, crazy, nosy, lovable family. Maybe that wasn't such a bad thing. What did his mother say _'People you love can drive you crazy sometimes'_

FIN:

AN: A wee bit fluffy. But I think we could all use a bit of fluff now and then. Please read and review. Hope you all had a happy thanksgiving.


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